Metal and Wood
by Midna Azusa
Summary: After reaching the rank of Shoku Warrior, the Xiaolin monks have to take on two apprentices, one to become the Dragon of Wood and one the Dragon of Metal. Finding these new warriors could be tough, all things considered. Especially when the Heylin side decides they don't want anymore Xiaolin dragons to deal with.
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first stab at a Xiaolin Showdown fanfiction. It's set after the original series (not Chronicles, although it'll incorporate some things from there). I hope you enjoy it! I don't own Xiaolin Showdown.**

* * *

The Xiaolin monks were gathered in the temple yard, with Master Fung presiding. He had claimed that they had a new mission now that they were Shoku Warriors.

"Young monks," Master Fung began, "now that you have reached the rank of Shoku Warrior, it is time for you to choose an apprentice."

"Oh, that is most wondrous!" Omi cheered. "I have always wanted my own apprentice!"

"This will not be just your apprentice, Omi," Master Fung chastised gently. "All four of you are to train this newest monk together."

"Uh, actually..." Dojo said hesitantly. "We're missing two elements. There's technically room for two more Xiaolin warriors."

"What? _Two_ new apprentices will be joining the temple!?"

"Hold the phone!" Raimundo said. "What's all this about missing elements? We've got all four!"

"The four elements represented, while all powerful, are not all of the Chinese elements. You see, the Chinese elements include two others—metal and wood."

Clay scratched his head and said, "Pardon me, but aren't those both part of my element? I mean, metal comes from the earth, and..."

"Yes and no," Master Fung continued. "You see, the five elements interact with each other to make up the world in which we live. Generating processes promote development, while overcoming processes control development. The generating interactions are as follows. Wood fuels fire, fire forms earth, earth contains metal, metal carries water, and water feeds wood."

"Hey, wait a minute!" Kimiko said. "You said there are five elements, and I heard most of our elements in there, but what about wind?"

"Wind is not a Chinese element," Omi answered, sounding as smug as ever. "It does make one wonder why Raimundo is not only a Xiaolin Dragon but also our leader. After all, his element is not one of the foundations of the world!"

"Maybe that's _why _I'm your leader," Raimundo countered. "Because _my _strength doesn't depend on one of you guys!"

Omi made an irritated sound, but Master Fung cleared his throat, preventing any further bickering. "Dojo is correct in assuming that we would be most powerful if all five of the Chinese elements were combined. Each of these elements draw on each other for strength, and each of these elements has a weakness among the others. Fire melts metal, metal penetrates wood, wood separates earth, earth absorbs water, and water quenches fire. Were the Heylin to train a dragon of wood or metal, we would find ourselves at a disadvantage."

"And, uh... I'm sensing that there are people out there with the potential to become both the Dragon of Wood _and _the Dragon of Metal," Dojo finished. When Master Fung looked at Dojo, the dragon sweat and said, "Oh, did I forget to mention that? My bad."

Master Fung sighed, massaging his forehead. "Then I suppose, young monks, that you will be choosing _two _apprentices, not one. Unfortunately, you will have to locate them both. Dojo will assist you."

"How are we supposed to find two new apprentices? I mean, if we were just going with whoever we felt like, that would be easy. But it sounds like you're saying there are certain people we _should _choose!" Kimiko said.

"Oh, well, that's easy!" said Dojo. "To find the Dragon of Wood, just advertise for a new monk! I'm sure he—or she," he amended at a look from Kimiko, "will come running!"

"Yeah, along with half a dozen other wanna-bes," Raimundo countered. "How will we figure out which one's the right one?"

"Well, uh..." Dojo put a finger to his chin, looking thoughtful. "How do you find the Dragon of Wood..."

The monks all sweat, and Omi asked, "You have no idea, do you?"

"Hey, at least I know that much! Wood's easier than metal, you know! The Dragon of Wood will be the most promising trainee. The Dragon of Metal, on the other hand, wouldn't come here even if you paid him! Metal's a very stubborn element, and, to find the Dragon of Metal and get him to come to the temple, you'll have to prove yourselves!"

"Prove ourselves? How?" Clay asked.

"I am more concerned about _why _we would need to prove ourselves to our apprentice! We are the most powerful Xiaolin warriors, especially me, so he should be begging us to train him upon broken knees!"

"That's bended knee, Omi," Raimundo corrected. "And I'm with cue-ball! Any would-be warriors need to prove themselves to _us_, not the other way around."

"Sorry, but that's how it goes. Dragons of metal are known for being hard-headed, stubborn, and unchanging. But, hey, just so you don't have to ask _everyone _on earth, there are a few other criteria that would help you find the Dragon of Metal."

"Such as?"

"Well, the Dragon of Metal is good with metal, so you'd want to find somebody who's good with technology. And, obviously, they have to be around your age. We can't train a baby, after all."

"So we're looking for somebody stubborn who's good with machines?" Raimundo asked.

Omi thought about it for a moment. _Somebody who is stubborn and good with machines... _A long-time enemy's voice ran through his head: _"Jackbots, attack!" "Jack Spicer's Evil Time Machine!" "I show up at all the battles I'm certain to lose!"_

Omi shook his head, trying to clear that bizarre idea from his mind. Hadn't he tried giving Jack a chance to change his evil ways before? _The last time I trusted Jack Spicer, he pulled the cotton over my face! He is a most unlikely choice for a Xiaolin Dragon, regardless of how stubborn he is!_

"As for how you have to prove yourselves, that's, uh...not very clear? See, it varies from person to person! Past dragons have wanted strength in their teammates, while others have wanted intelligence, compassion, or even cooking skills! Some only worry about what the leader's got going on, and others want the _whole _team to prove they've got what's needed."

"So in addition to being stubborn, the Dragon of Metal is unpredictable?"

"Hoo-ee, this is going to be tougher than finding a needle in a haystack!"

"Clay's right!" Kimiko said. "How are we going to figure out what they want, even if we _do _find out who it is?"

"Okay, we can worry about the metal thing later," Raimundo reasoned. "Why don't we start with the one we can actually find? Let's find us a Dragon of Wood!"

* * *

"Jack, you've really outdone yourself this time!" Jack told himself, looking at his latest invention, a device that looked like a black and gold wristwatch. "Jack Spicer's Evil Teleporter! Golden Tiger Claws? Who needs 'em!? With this, I can teleport to anywhere in the world with just the push of a button!"

He put it on his wrist and tested it out, entering the coordinates for his kitchen. A moment later, he was standing in front of his refrigerator.

"Sweet! Now I can get to all of the Shen Gong Wu before those Xiaolin losers even leave their temple!" He laughed evilly, opening his refrigerator to get himself a sandwich.

Heading out of his kitchen with his sandwich, he took a bite. "I should really check in with WaveRider13, let him know what's going on."

WaveRider13 was somebody Jack had met in a chat room online. They'd been chatting for about a year now, bonding over their desire to prove people wrong about them. At this point, Jack felt that he and WaveRider13 were pretty close, even though he _had _found out a couple of months ago that the guy was on the Xiaolin side.

He logged into his computer in his bedroom, checking his chat room to see if there were any messages from WaveRider13.

There was one: "Hey, Darkness Absolute! Hope your day's going better than mine. Omi's running his mouth again."

That was how Jack had found out what side this guy was on. He'd mentioned Omi himself, complaining about Omi always talking trash, and WaveRider13 had asked him how he knew Omi. When Jack said he was an enemy of his, WaveRider13 had replied by saying he knew Omi well because they were both at the Xiaolin temple. That had almost ended this relationship—if WaveRider13 hadn't commented on how annoying Omi was for him, too. Lately they'd been bonding over their irritation with Omi, the youngest of the Xiaolin warriors.

Jack, or Darkness Absolute, as he was known on here, replied, "What did Chrome Dome say this time?"

Apparently WaveRider13 was online because he responded quickly, "He's going on _again _about how he doesn't think I belong in the temple! Honestly, that guy's so full of himself!"

"Yeah, I know! Hey, maybe you should leave those Xiaolin losers and join the Heylin side!"

"Thanks, but no thanks. It's not worth it. Sure, Omi's a pain sometimes, but he's not that bad. How are things going with you? Any more problems with Wuya?"

Wuya—another reason these two had discovered each other's alliances. Since she was always talking trash about Jack, Jack had mentioned her several times.

"She's been with Chase Young, and, since she got her body back, she hasn't been around much. I actually kind of miss her, you know? I mean, yeah, she was always yelling at me, but I thought we had something!"

"Haha, you sound like you're in love with her!"

"No, I'm not! I just don't like that she ditched me for Chase Young!"

"Okay, now that I get. Nothing sucks worse than being ditched by your team."

"Exactly!"

"Well, as they say, no honor among thieves. Maybe _you_ should leave the Heylin side and become a Xiaolin warrior!"

Jack blinked, reading that message one more time before responding with, "That's a joke, right?"

"Duh! I wouldn't expect the greatest evil of all time to suddenly abandon all hope of world domination to start fighting for good in a bathrobe!"

That line rang familiar—probably because Jack had said it himself before. Well, at least he knew he wasn't the only one who thought those robes were stupid. "Yeah, you got that right! I plan to rule the world, and I can't do that with those Xiaolin losers—uh, no offense."

"None taken. That is, if you don't mind me calling you a Heylin wuss."

"Okay, that's fair. Hey, if you promise not to tell the Xiaolin warriors, I'll tell you about my latest invention!"

"Sure, I promise. Go ahead."

Jack then proceeded to tell WaveRider13 all about his teleporter and how it would make getting the Shen Gong Wu so much easier. WaveRider13 was suitably impressed, more so than Wuya ever was, and Jack felt accomplished yet again. This was why he kept talking to this guy, he remembered. _WaveRider13 may be a goody goody Xiaolin monk, but at least he appreciates my genius!_

"Glad everything's going so well for you, Darkness Absolute! That teleporter sounds cool. Wish I had one."

"Ha! As if! I'd make one for you...if you weren't on the other side."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. It's not _that _cool. Anyway, I should get off here. We're expecting some new monks soon, and I need to go greet them."

New monks, huh? Well, that was an interesting piece of news. "Okay, I guess I'll let you go. Later, WaveRider13."

"Later, Darkness Absolute."

Jack logged off his computer, thinking. New monks at the Xiaolin temple? Would they, maybe, be too distracted to protect the Shen Gong Wu vault?

* * *

***Information about the elements came from _China Highlights_, "China's Five Elements Philosophy - Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water."**


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm glad this story's getting such a positive response so far! In response to my guest reviewer: I'm sorry, I can't answer that question. It'll get answered later in this story, though, so don't worry about that! So, without further ado, here's chapter 2! Enjoy! I don't own Xiaolin Showdown (or Chronicles since that now needs to be mentioned).**

* * *

On the day the apprentice monks were due to arrive, Raimundo gathered his team in the temple yard to greet them. The elder monks all joined them as well, keeping back some distance to allow the Shoku warriors to deal with the new monks.

Raimundo scanned the prospective dragons. There were about 25. Not a huge number, sure, but more than he really wanted to deal with. They ranged in age from 12 to 17, telling Raimundo all he needed to know about the possible ages of their Dragon of Metal. Regardless, this wasn't the time to be worrying about that monk—he had to find a Dragon of Wood first.

Raimundo stepped forward, holding his arms out in a gesture of welcome. "Welcome to the Xiaolin temple," he said by way of greeting. He felt a bit out of his element, but Master Fung had made it clear that this was his responsibility. "I'm Raimundo, Dragon of the Wind and leader of the Dragon Warriors." He gestured behind him, introducing his teammates, "The three monks behind me are the other Dragon Warriors. Clay, the Dragon of Earth."

The cowboy tipped his hat with a friendly smile.

"Kimiko, the Dragon of Fire."

She waved, smiling as well.

"And Omi, the Dragon of Water."

"Welcome, new friends!" Omi said to the apprentices.

Raimundo was pleasantly surprised that Omi didn't make a single disparaging sound throughout all of that.

"As you all know, we're thinking of taking on another monk as an apprentice. Your element would be wood. We'll start training all of you, and whoever shows the most potential will be the one we choose. I wish you all the best of luck! Now, let's get this party started!"

* * *

When it came to training the apprentices, Raimundo was more than happy to let Omi take the reigns. After all, as leader, he had the right to delegate less desirable tasks to his team, and that was how he viewed the whole elimination game they were playing.

Omi assigned each apprentice a number, saying that there was no reason to remember all of their names since only one would be staying. That seemed a bit impersonal, but he had a point, so nobody complained.

As Omi had the new apprentices sparring with each other, Raimundo and the others stood nearby, watching. Ultimately they all had to decide who would be their new teammate. Raimundo never countered Omi's choices as he told several apprentices that they could leave—they weren't doing nearly as well as the others, after all.

"Pardon my asking, but why are we just letting the little feller train them? Didn't Master Fung say we _all _had to choose an apprentice?"

"Yeah, but do you really wanna go through 25 different people with all four of us having to agree on them?" Raimundo asked Clay. "It'll take forever! I figure we can let Omi narrow it down for us, then we can pick the best of what's left."

"Why Omi?" Kimiko asked. "Why not you?"

"As if! Look, Omi's all too happy to have a bunch of apprentices all to himself. Besides, he grew up here in the temple, so he's got more experience than any of us. All things considered, he's the obvious choice."

"13! 21! You may go. Thank you for your time," Omi said, calling out two of the older apprentices. Both walked off, looking disappointed.

Raimundo stretched, eager to go do something else—and he knew just what, too. "Well, I'm gonna go see if I can't figure something out about this Dragon of Metal." He started walking off, adding, "Later. Tell Omi to stop when he's got it down to three candidates, then come get me."

He figured he'd have some idea how to find the last monk by then.

* * *

Up above, Hannibal Bean watched from the temple roof. "Hmm. The Xiaolin monks are training another apprentice, are they? Well, we can't have that now, can we?" He laughed through his lips, hopping onto Ying-Ying and flying away.

* * *

While evil was afoot above the temple, evil was just as present within the temple walls. With the Xiaolin monks occupied with their apprentices, there was nobody to guard the Shen Gong Wu vault.

Deep below the building that housed the vault was the vault itself. Protected by a musical combination that opened the floor and granted access, the vault was easily broken into. It was even easier to break in if you happened to be an evil boy genius with a teleporter.

A flash of light brought Jack Spicer into the vault. Having been here before, he knew the coordinates he needed.

"Nobody can stop Jack Spicer, evil genius! Especially if they don't know I'm here!" He gave a high-pitched laugh, then covered his mouth quickly, realizing that sound could carry easily down here. He glanced around, then uncovered his mouth and started gathering Shen Gong Wu into a bag.

"Let's see... Cannon Blaster, check," he said, bagging the Shen Gong Wu. "Lotus Twister, check. Orb of Tornami, check! Man, Chrome Dome will flip when he finds out _this _one's mine! I wish I could see the look on his face when he realizes it's gone! Ha!"

Jack continued looting the Shen Gong Wu vault, figuring he had all the time in the world.

* * *

"Alright, time to unravel that mystery!" Raimundo said, alone in his room. "Who's the Dragon of Metal?"

There was one person that clearly came to mind when Raimundo thought of the requirements—stubborn and technologically gifted. If that was all it took to be the Dragon of Metal, then Raimundo could think of a name off the top of his head—an impossible name, but a name all the same. That was why Raimundo was certain it had to be somebody they'd never met.

_Then again..._

He got up and headed for the Shen Gong Wu vault, a plan forming in his mind. There was one Shen Gong Wu that might be able to help. He'd used it once to find out where he would find Omi when the little guy had left the temple. Maybe that same Wu could be used to show him where the Dragon of Metal would be found.

He entered the building, opened the vault with the musical combination...and immediately knew something was wrong. Several of the drawers that should have held Shen Gong Wu were hanging open, empty. He ran down into the vault, hoping that the thief was still here so he could kick their butt.

When he was halfway down the stairs, he heard a girly scream and some beeping, as if somebody was pushing buttons on a keypad or something. A moment later, there was a flash of light, and, when Raimundo arrived at the source, there was nothing except more missing Shen Gong Wu.

"Darn it! How did he get out of here so fast?" Raimundo wondered.

That girly scream could only have been one person—Jack Spicer. Raimundo started checking the vault, looking to see how bad the damage was. It wasn't too bad, although Omi would be less than happy. The Orb of Tornami was among the missing Shen Gong Wu. Unfortunately, so was the very Wu he wanted.

"Well, so much for that idea!" Raimundo said, irritated.

Knowing they couldn't let Jack keep _that _Shen Gong Wu, Raimundo ran out to get his team. Training apprentices could wait. They needed a plan to raid Jack's lab and steal back what he'd just stolen from them.

* * *

Omi was rather impressed with several of the apprentices. Sure, some were pretty pathetic, but then there were numbers 4 and 16. Number 4 was a girl, which seemed strange to Omi, considering that girls were very clearly weaker than boys, but he wasn't going to say that with Kimiko watching his every move. Number 16 was probably the youngest of the apprentices, but he was very skilled for his age. His ambition reminded Omi a fair bit of himself, although the young monk was more humble than Omi himself.

After seeing number 16 finish the obstacle course in the span of about five seconds, Omi knew this was his choice. He had bounced around that obstacle course like a ping pong ball and was more than an equal match for any of the other apprentices. Well, except for maybe number 4, but Omi would worry about that later.

"You, number 16!" Omi called.

The young monk turned, hoping that he wasn't about to get sent home. "Yes, brother Omi?" he asked.

"You have a very fierce method. What is your name?"

"Respectfully, brother Omi, my official title is Boris Antonio Rolf Jean-Pierre Gaulle LeGrand IV."

"That does not sound like a fearsome warrior. Hm... I shall call you Ping Pong!"

Boris Antonio Rolf Jean-Pierre Gaulle LeGrand IV—or Ping Pong, as he was now called—seemed not only okay with Omi renaming him but positively thrilled. He hugged Omi, exclaiming in French, "Fantastique! Brother Omi, you are true to your reputation! You are most intelligent!"

Yes, Omi was growing quite attached to this young monk.

* * *

Kimiko watched as Omi narrowed their choices down considerably. He was definitely efficient, she had to give him that. In the past four hours, he'd kicked out 8 of the 25 possibilities. There were a couple that Kimiko thought were showing great promise—one was a girl with long blond hair, the other a small boy much like Omi if he wore glasses. Omi seemed to be rather impressed with the boy especially, even going so far as to talk to him alone.

"Am I too late for the tryouts?" a voice asked from behind her.

Kimiko turned to see a familiar face—their friend from New York, Jermaine. He was wearing his Xiaolin robes, the ones he'd been wearing while he was Chase Young's apprentice.

"Jermaine! Don't tell me you want to try out with these guys? You're way out of their league!"

"Yeah, I know. But I heard you were looking for another monk, so I figured I'd boogie on over and see if there was room for one more."

"I've got no problem with that," she answered. "But it's not really my call. Rai's in charge around here. You'd have to ask him."

"Rai? What about Master Fung?"

"He's still our master, but Rai's our leader. Any big decisions about our team have to go through him now."

"Hey, that's great! Where is Rai? I—"

Before Jermaine could finish that, Raimundo came skidding over, yelling, "Hey, guys! We've got trouble!"

Omi turned, along with the remaining apprentices. Kimiko and Jermaine looked as well. Clay came running out of the temple, hearing the commotion.

"What's all the hoopin' and hollerin'?" he asked.

"Rai, what's wrong?"

"Spicer just raided the Shen Gong Wu vault! And he took the Crystal Glasses!"

"Oh, that is most troublesome," Omi said, walking over. "With the Crystal Glasses, Jack Spicer will be able to look into the future and see our every move. He would become most formidable!"

"Well, we'll just have to get 'em back," Clay said.

"Need a hand with that?" Jermaine asked.

One of the young apprentices, the miniature Omi with the glasses, walked over and said, "I don't mean to impose, but perhaps I could help?"

"Oh, yes! Ping Pong could learn much by observing me."

"Ping Pong?"

"That is what brother Omi calls me," the young monk replied happily.

"Great. Shoku warriors, Jermaine, and Ping Pong, come with me! I've got a plan. The rest of you," Raimundo addressed the remaining apprentices, "take a breather. We'll be back."

The four Xiaolin dragons, along with their two would-be teammates, headed off to retrieve the stolen Shen Gong Wu.


	3. Chapter 3

**Edit: So I wasn't satisfied with this chapter at all, especially the first part. I felt like I was rushing things a bit too much, so I've changed it accordingly. Future chapters will be posted weekly unless I need more time for a chapter. Given that I'm in the middle of moving, it could be a couple of weeks before I actually upload a new chapter and not just a replacement for a bad one. Sorry if it takes a while, but I want to make sure it's actually ready before I upload from now on!**

**Thanks, Josh Spicer, for your review. It helped me realize this chapter wasn't what I wanted it to be.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Xiaolin Showdown or Xiaolin Chronicles.**

Jack laughed evilly as he stashed his stolen Shen Gong Wu. It had been all too easy with Jack Spicer's Evil Teleporter at his disposal. And taking advantage of what he'd learned from his online friend to raid the vault when it was most vulnerable?

"Man, sometimes I'm so evil, I even scare myself!" He laughed again, closing and locking the cabinet where he kept his Shen Gong Wu.

Just then, his laptop beeped at him, notifying him of a new message. He hurried over to check, wondering if WaveRider13 had found the ransacked vault yet. After all, someone had walked in on him.

The message that awaited him was indeed from WaveRider13. It read, "Darkness Absolute, the Shen Gong Wu vault's been pretty much emptied. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

Jack snickered (evilly) and typed up his response. "Really? Do you always blame me when things go missing?"

He waited a few seconds before the reply popped up. "Considering the guy who found this out said he heard somebody but never _saw _anybody, yeah. You've got a teleporter. Look, bud, if I'm going to promise to keep secrets from the rest of the monks, you need to NOT use those kinds of things against us!"

"Hey, I'm evil. What did you expect?"

"Hey, I'm no saint, either. By the way, you still scream like a girl, Jack."

Jack sweat, nervous. He'd never told WaveRider13 his name.

"Who are you calling Jack? That guy's a loser!"

"That's not a nice thing to say about yourself, Jack."

Thinking quickly, Jack responded, "Look, I'm only going to say this once. Jack Spicer doesn't even have enough brain cells to tie his shoelaces. I'm a thousand times smarter than he is! Don't even think of lumping us together, okay? Besides, I didn't use my teleporter on you! I'm planning on debuting that bad boy in an upcoming battle with your loser warriors!"

"Is that so? Wanna give me some details on that, then? Or explain why Jack, the guy who can't even tie his own shoelaces, was in the temple vault? Did he steal your teleporter or something?"

Jack sweat, thinking. He needed a good excuse. The last thing he really wanted was to be forced into a confession. He needed the anonymity that this relationship provided. Then, an idea dawning on him, he typed, "I guess he might have seen the blueprints. I...kind of posted them online?"

There was a pause, and Jack wondered if WaveRider13 had given up. Finally he saw the three dots pop up again, indicating that WaveRider13 was typing his response.

"That's... Really? You posted them online?"

"Yeah. I know, stupid, right? I'm taking them down right now."

And, with that, his little fib need never be discovered. Jack could hardly believe his own genius sometimes! Now he, Darkness Absolute, could continue in his anonymity without fear. Granted, he would have to tread more carefully around WaveRider13. Clearly the guy was smarter than Jack had given him credit for or he wouldn't have come so close to finding out the truth.

"Yeah, that's probably for the best, Darkness Absolute. You know, considering you're getting Jacked. He's totally ripping you off!"

"I know! Man, I should have charged for that blueprint. I mean, it clearly works, right? He wouldn't have been in your temple if it didn't."

"No joke. But it's okay. The Dragon Warriors are on their way over to Jack's place to get back what he stole from us, anyway."

Jack sweat. That was the last thing he wanted to hear—or, rather, read. He typed, "Oh, really? Well, I hope they bring back your Wu."

"Yeah, same here. We don't need Jack having that many Shen Gong Wu, after all. Besides, he took the Orb of Tornami, and Omi's not too happy about that one."

"Isn't that, like, his favorite Shen Gong Wu or something?" Jack responded, hoping that he could disguise himself better by playing a little dumb.

"No 'something' about it! He uses that thing all the time. But it's cool. We'll have it and the other Shen Gong Wu back in the temple vault soon. Then YOU can teleport in and steal them from us!"

"Haha, yeah! Don't worry, though. I promise not to take too many...but I might take the Orb of Tornami if the cue ball really likes it that much!"

WaveRider13 sent him a laughing emoji and nothing else.

"Anyway, WaveRider13, gotta run! I've got some business of my own to take care of if Jack's really stealing my ideas now."

"Good luck and have fun kicking Spicer butt! Later, Darkness Absolute."

Jack logged off the computer and started biting his nail. He hadn't expected the Xiaolin dragons to come breaking down his door—or, more likely, wall—today. He didn't have enough Jackbots, he didn't know how close they were, and he wasn't sure if he should try playing dumb or use their Shen Gong Wu against them.

The more he thought about how he was supposed to take down the Xiaolin dragons, the more panicked he became. He really hoped WaveRider13 was bluffing.

* * *

Elsewhere, a Xiaolin monk sat in his room, staring at his computer. He'd been wondering who Darkness Absolute was for awhile now, and he'd thought for a moment that he'd finally figured it out.

_But Jack wouldn't make fun of himself...would he? I mean, he's always whining when anyone else does it! Still...better not rule this guy out. Maybe he isn't Spicer, but he _could _be our Dragon of Metal. He seems like a pretty cool dude, even if he is on the wrong side._

He closed his computer, deciding not to tell anyone else, not even Master Fung, about this insane theory of his. After all, that could complicate matters quite a bit, considering he was chatting with the enemy. Just thinking of how Omi would react to that made the monk cringe.

_No, no, I'm not telling him. Not unless I _really _think this could be the guy we're looking for. That should also help us get the Shen Gong Wu back from Spicer. He's going to have to deal with _another _Heylin baddie busting in on him on top of us!_

With that settled, he put down his computer and headed out of his room. He had other things he needed to do, after all.

* * *

"So the Xiaolin dragons are training a new apprentice? Great. That's exactly what we need," Wuya said sarcastically, rolling her eyes at the bean's information.

"I couldn't agree more. Why, if they find all of the elements, they might become powerful enough to defeat evil for good! For the sake of evil, I think it's in our best interest to put our differences aside, wouldn't you say?"

Chase Young took a sip of his Lao Mang Long soup, seemingly indifferent to this news. "I am already aware that the Xiaolin warriors are seeking new apprentices and am working on a remedy to the situation. In other words, I don't need your help."

"Come now, Chase. Why must there always be bad blood between us? Why, I made you who you are today."

"You did nothing of the sort. You merely gave me the power. What I did with it was entirely up to me, and _I _am the one who made me who I am. Now get out. This audience is over." Thus speaking, Chase snapped his fingers, and his wild cats growled at the unwelcome guest.

Hannibal Bean hopped on the Ying-Ying bird, scowling. "I'm warning you, Chase Young, you _will _regret this. Why, I might just take on my own apprentice and make him stronger than you."

"I find that hard to believe," Chase said with a smug smirk. "Now leave my sight at once!"

Ying-Ying flew away, letting out a screech as it went. Wuya watched the evil bean leave before whirling on Chase and demanding, "Why didn't you hear him out!? The elements balance each other out, meaning that the Xiaolin warriors would be more powerful if they had all of their elements united! We cannot let that happen!"

"As I just finished saying, I already know that they are seeking new apprentices. In fact, I have sent one of my own to infiltrate their search for the Dragon of Wood. She should prove a suitable choice, which will prevent them from finding a Dragon of Wood. As for the Dragon of Metal, I believe it's high time I took on a new apprentice myself."

"Really? And where are you going to find an apprentice with that kind of capability?"

"In the most unlikely of places."

"You don't mean—"

"Unfortunately, yes. I've sensed great potential from him for some time. I tried to ignore it, but it has grown more evident over the last few months. It's only a matter of time before the Xiaolin warriors realize that he is the one they're looking for. If we can recruit him to our side before they do, then they will never complete their team."

"Well, the good news is he's already on the Heylin side. We've got an advantage in this situation." Wuya laughed a bit, pleased that stopping the Xiaolin warriors would be such a simple task.

* * *

"May I ask why we have not _done _anything to retrieve our Shen Gong Wu from Jack Spicer? This plan seems most twisty to me."

"Screwey, Omi," Raimundo corrected. "And trust me, I know what I'm doing."

It was sunset on the day Jack Spicer had stolen their Shen Gong Wu. The Xiaolin warriors had taken off for Jack's home (after changing, of course) and were currently hiding out, crouching in the shrubs in his backyard. They had been there since two o'clock. In fact, they'd been waiting so long that Kimiko was using the Tangle Web Comb to style her hair, a trick she had recently discovered. She'd done a French braid, a ballet bun, Tokyo bob, assymetrical punk, and was now wearing her hair in two braided pigtails. They had been waiting here so long that she was sick of it.

"Rai, what we're doing is nothing!" Kimiko exclaimed. "We've been hiding out here for hours! Just what are you waiting for?"

At that moment, a girly scream echoed through the air.

"That girly scream, that's what!" Raimundo answered, getting to his feet. "Shoku warriors, let's move!"

The four Shoku warriors, along with Jermaine and Ping Pong, made for Jack's house. They busted down the wall, as so many people did when they wanted to enter Jack's home without running the risk of meeting his parents.

"Jack Spicer!" Omi said. "Prepare for a most humiliating defeat!"

Jack looked at them, wide-eyed. Then he screamed again, typed something frantically on his computer, and screamed some more.

Omi looked at Jack in concern. Jermaine looked disturbed. Ping Pong simply seemed confused. Kimiko and Clay exchanged looks before Clay stepped forward.

"Uh, you feeling alright, partner? You're acting about as jumpy as a turkey on Thanksgiving."

Raimundo smirked. _Looks like he's got some problems, alright._ He stepped forward, saying, "Alright, Jack, cough up the Wu you snatched!"

Jack threw himself at Raimundo's feet, begging, "PLEASE DON'T HURT ME! I bruise easily! A-and I have a really bad cold!" He gave a couple of forced coughs to emphasize that point.

"Relax, Jack, I'm not going to hurt you," Raimundo assured him.

"Y-you're not?" Jack asked, getting up.

"No." He pulled out the Sweet Baby Among Us. "That's what this baby's for. Sweet Baby Among Us!"

Raimundo put the golden baby statue down, and it grew in size as it came to life. The giant baby looked down at Jack menacingly. Jack shrank away from it.

"H-how did I miss that one?"

"Give us back the Wu you stole, and this won't get ugly," Raimundo said.

"Too late for that," Kimiko said, referencing Jack's own appearance.

"Hey!" Jack whined, but Clay cracked his knuckles, and Jack shut up immediately. "Okay, okay! Why don't we split the Wu fifty-fifty?"

"Jack Spicer, a Shoku warrior does not make deals with the forces of evil!" Omi answered.

"Brother Omi is correct. That would be highly inappropriate."

_Kind of like being friends with the forces of evil._

Jermaine, looking confident, stepped forward. "You know, I think we can settle this easy enough. There's six of us against one of you. Those odds don't exactly work in your favor, homie."

Jack put a finger to his chin, looking at the ceiling. "You know, you've got a point there. Hm, if only I had some way of dealing with this situation." He snapped his fingers as if he'd just now gotten an idea and said, "Oh, wait! I do! Jackbots! Attack!"

"The usual, Spicer? Come on, don't you have anything original?"

As about twenty Jackbots came out and fired at the Xiaolin monks, they shot into action.

"Big Bang Meteorang!" Clay said, throwing the weapon and taking out three Jackbots in one shot.

Omi's Shimo Staff transformed into a spiked club, which he swung at one of the Jackbots like a baseball bat, sending it flying into one of its comrades. Both hit the wall shortly after.

"Arrow Sparrow!" Kimiko unleashed two flaming birds, each of which targeted one Jackbot. When the sparrows hit their marks, the Jackbots exploded.

Jermaine and Ping Pong took care of the other three. Taking some time off hadn't weakened Jermaine's skills at all. In fact, it seemed to be just the opposite. He worked with Ping Pong as though the two of them had practiced it. Two of the remaining three Jackbots were above, trying to stay out of range. The third was charging at them, its arms turned into buzz saws. At a look from Jermaine, Ping Pong leaped into the air, landing on Jermaine's hands. Jermaine then flung the little guy up into the air, where he took out both Jackbots at the same time with his bare hands. Meanwhile Jermaine used repulse the monkey on the final Jackbot, sending it flying into another wall.

Throughout this whole thing, Raimundo just watched, standing in front of Jack. Jack watched as well, albeit with more trepidation than the Shoku warrior.

"No fair, those were my only Jackbots!" Jack whined.

"So about those Shen Gong Wu?" Raimundo asked.

The six warriors were all surrounding Jack now, looking at him threateningly. He knew that he wouldn't be getting out of here in one piece. At least, not with the Shen Gong Wu.

"Okay, okay! I'll return all of your stolen Shen Gong Wu. But, if I do, you have to promise that you'll leave me alone! No basketball, no showdowns, no snide comments, no nothing! Deal?"

"Now that I can agree to," Raimundo answered. "Deal."

"Do not attempt any of your treachery, Jack Spicer!" Omi said.

Defeated, Jack opened the cabinet, revealing his Shen Gong Wu.

The Xiaolin warriors looked through the cabinet, reclaiming what was theirs. They aimed for some payback, but the first time they did, Jack snatched the Monkey Staff away from Jermaine's hand, saying, "I said I'd give you back _your _Shen Gong Wu. This one's mine!"

"As Xiaolin warriors, we are bound by our word. We cannot take more than what was ours in the first place."

"Brother Omi, you are so true to your word! We did agree to only take what Jack had taken from us and then leave him in peace, after all," Ping Pong said cheerily.

Jack, now that he wasn't so panicked, asked, "Hey, since when does gnome boy have a twin? And why's he wearing glasses?"

"That's Ping Pong," Raimundo answered. "And he might just be joining the team, Spicer, so get used to him."

"What!? Oh, great! That's just what I needed, another Xiaolin loser to compete against!"

"Don't feel bad, Jack. You've still got your health, right?" Raimundo grinned and added, "That is, for now."

Jack jumped, not liking the tone of Raimundo's voice.

Once they had retrieved all of their stolen Shen Gong Wu, the Xiaolin warriors left. Jack breathed a sigh of relief.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry for the wait! Been getting settled into my new home and looking for a new job. Here's the next chapter. I don't own Xiaolin Showdown.**

* * *

"Is it just me, or was that way too easy?" Kimiko asked. "I mean, I know Jack's been scraping the bottom of the barrel for awhile now, but he usually at least _tries _to put up a fight!"

"Kimiko is correct," Omi said, looking suspicious. "I believe that Jack Spicer may be attempting to run the cotton over our heads."

"Omi, seriously, you have _got _to be doing that on purpose!" Raimundo said, amazed at how badly Omi could mess up slang.

"Reckon we oughta check the Wu? Make sure they work?"

"A very wise decision, brother Clay," said Ping Pong. "Might I suggest we do that before we return to the Xiaolin temple?"

Jermaine reached into their sack of retrieved Shen Gong Wu and pulled out the Changing Chopsticks. "Changing Chopsticks!" he said, activating them.

He shrank down to the size of a grain of rice, as should have happened with the Changing Chopsticks. Using them again, he returned to his full size.

"They seem real enough to me," he said.

"Good enough for me!" Raimundo responded. "Let's head back to the temple."

* * *

Meanwhile, Jack Spicer laughed evilly, as he was wont to do. After having just lost all of the Shen Gong Wu he had stolen from the Xiaolin monks, what could Jack possibly have to laugh about? Why, it's simple—he _hadn't _lost all of the Shen Gong Wu he had stolen from the Xiaolin monks.

"Jack, you're a genius!" he said to himself. "Taking the one Shen Gong Wu that would make it easy for me to find all of the new Shen Gong Wu first! I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner."

Jack held his one acquisition up, laughing maniacally as he did—the Crystal Glasses gleamed in the light.

"I'm glad WaveRider13 messaged me about the monks coming—it gave me plenty of time to replace the Crystal Glasses with a duplicate! Sure, if they try to _use _them, those Xiaolin losers will figure it out in a heartbeat, but they never use this Wu! This is brilliant! Now I can use the Crystal Glasses to see when and where the next Shen Gong Wu will reveal itself! That way, I can always be the first one there!"

_Of course, it would have been better if I'd been able to keep more of them, but making a realistic copy of the Crystal Glasses was hard enough. I barely have any parts for Jackbots these days... Anyway, the Crystal Glasses will also tell me when the Xiaolin monks will be away from their temple, giving me the best chance to steal the rest of their Wu back!_

Jack laughed evilly again, thinking about his devilish plan. It was almost as good as the time he'd gotten help from his future self to find the Shen Gong Wu before they revealed themselves, maybe even better since there wasn't an old geezer with a walker to worry about this time. He put the Crystal Glasses on.

"Crystal Glasses!" he cried, concentrating on the next Shen Gong Wu.

* * *

Upon returning to the temple, the Xiaolin dragons were greeted by one of their apprentices—the blond girl whom Omi was considering as a potential Dragon Warrior.

"Did you get all of the Shen Gong Wu back?" she asked.

"Of course, we did," Omi said, jumping off Dojo. "We are Shoku Warriors! Jack Spicer is no match for us!"

"Speaking of Shen Gong Wu, I'm taking them back to the vault," Raimundo said. "But first..." He turned to Jermaine. "What are you doing here, anyway? Not that I'm complaining, but I was just wondering."

"I heard you were looking for a fifth monk, so I thought I'd stop by and see if I couldn't join the team."

"Well, an experienced monk joining a bunch of potentials?" Dojo said, hands on his hips. "This should be good."

Raimundo smiled. "Well, if you _really _want to try out with the other 'apprentices,' get used to Omi bossing you around. He's in charge until there's only three left."

"Yo, homie, I'm a Wudai Warrior, remember?"

"Yeah, and we're looking for an apprentice. But it's cool, it's cool. You might be the Dragon of Wood we've been looking for, so give it a shot. Seeing as you already hit Wudai Warrior before we did even though you had a late start, you shouldn't have any trouble showing up these amateurs."

Jermaine grinned. "Alright, Rai. If that's your answer, sign me up for apprentice training!"

"Great! Okay, Omi, Jermaine's yours now. Train him until he's as good as you," Raimundo teased.

"Very well," Omi said, writing something on a notepad. He ripped the small paper out of the notepad and handed it to Jermaine, adding, "Here, your number is 26. You must wear it for the duration of your training."

Jermaine took the number, raising an eyebrow. "Uh...okay."

"Rai! Aren't we supposed to be narrowing it down, not adding more?" Kimiko said, a bit irritated.

"What, you _don't _want to give Jermaine a shot?"

"That's not what I'm saying!"

"Then stop acting like it," Raimundo finished, walking off with the Shen Gong Wu. "I'll be in the meditation hall. Don't bother me unless Omi picks three apprentices, a Shen Gong Wu reveals itself, or evil's on our doorstep." Silently and sarcastically, he added, _That should give me about five minutes._

"All right, apprentices!" Omi called to their potentials. "We shall resume training! Let us continue with our exercises!" He looked at Jermaine and said, "Perhaps you would like to attempt our obstacle course?"

"Sure, Omi," Jermaine said, moving toward the obstacle course he was certain he'd tackle with ease.

Kimiko pulled out her PDA, tired of watching Omi train young monks. Clay stretched, then headed inside to grab a bite to eat.

* * *

"Alright, that's all of them," Raimundo said, sliding the drawer containing the Manchurian Musca closed. "Now for the reason I was coming here in the first place."

He reached into the bag one final time and pulled out the Crystal Glasses. "With any luck, these can show me where I can find the Dragon of Metal."

He was about to put them on when he heard someone calling his name. He groaned, irritated. "What part of 'don't bother me' didn't they understand?"

Knowing this would have to wait until later, Raimundo put the Crystal Glasses away and headed up the stairs, leaving the vault. _Knowing my luck, that's Master Fung with a long list of chores for me to do._

* * *

Several hours later, Omi had at last narrowed the apprentices down to three hopefuls—Willow, Ping Pong, and Jermaine. This was the third interruption that prevented Raimundo from using the Crystal Glasses, which irritated him for a minute when Clay came looking for him. However, he dutifully joined his team to determine their next course of action.

"Okay, Jermaine's no surprise, and you and Ping Pong have way too much in common for him _not _to be a finalist. But isn't that one a girl?" At Kimiko's glare, Raimundo held up his hands and clarified, "Not that _I _have any problems with adding another girl to the team, but I thought _you _didn't think they could fight, Omi."

"Willow may be a girl, but she is most skilled in combat," Omi answered. "I must admit, this selection surprised me, too. I did not expect when she first arrived that she would have such remarkable skill."

Kimiko groaned, wondering if Omi would ever stop having such outdated views on girls. She feared the answer was no.

"Hmm..." Dojo slithered among the three finalists, looking at each of them critically. "Good choices, good choices... They definitely have the potential... Yes, I can tell you, the Dragon of Wood is _definitely _here!"

"Well, hey, partner, that's great! Think you can tell us who it is yet?"

Dojo sweat and looked around nervously. "Uh...no. You see, I know the Dragon of Wood is here _somewhere_, but asking me to say exactly where is like..." He trailed off, looking for a good comparison.

"Kind of like when we go looking for Shen Gong Wu and you can tell us it's around _somewhere_?" Raimundo asked.

"Yeah, something like that."

"Okay, so we just have to figure out which of these guys is the best, and that should be the Dragon of Wood?" Kimiko asked, remembering their initial conversation.

"Exactly! It's either Willow, Ping Pong, or Jermaine."

"All three have my approval," Omi said. "We merely need to determine who is the final choice."

Raimundo shrugged. "Aw, whatever! We'll figure it out soon enough. In the meantime, Willow, Ping Pong, Jermaine—welcome to the team!"

"Thank you, Brother Raimundo," Ping Pong said, bowing respectfully. "I will do my best to earn a permanent place on your team."

"So they're all joining the team until we pick one?" Clay asked.

"Unless you've got a better idea, yeah," said Raimundo. "I mean, what harm could it do to have three extra bodies when hunting for Wu?"

"So, young monks, how goes the search for a Dragon of Wood?" Master Fung asked, approaching his students.

"We've narrowed it down to three hopefuls, and now we're planning some intensive evaluation to figure out who's on the team and who's heading for home," Raimundo answered, hitching a thumb at the three potential dragons.

Master Fung nodded his approval. "Excellent. And have you determined a course of action with the Dragon of Metal?"

Raimundo was about to answer when Dojo started shaking like a leaf.

"W-whoa! Heads up, boys and girls! We've got a Shen Gong Wu alert!"

_And that makes four times I've been stopped, _Raimundo thought. _Man, how am I supposed to find a reluctant dragon when I don't even have time?_

"You had best attend to that, young monks," Master Fung said.

"What Wu is it?" Kimiko asked as Dojo pulled out the Shen Gong Wu scroll.

"The Fifi-Xiaogo*!" he answered as the scroll showed an object in the shape of a laying dog. "When used, this Shen Gong Wu turns into a camping trailer." As Dojo spoke, the scroll showed a small man standing by the dog as it grew in size, then the man walked up to the dog and went inside. "It's a great Wu to have when you're roughing it."

"Yeah, nothing says camping in style like a dog-shaped trailer," Kimiko said a bit sarcastically as Dojo put the scroll away.

"Alright, crew! Let's get that Wu!" Raimundo said.

* * *

***Mentioned as being a part of plans for season 4 of Xiaolin Showdown. The lack of a season 4 is why it never appeared.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Sorry for the months of waiting. I teach, so April, May, and June (because my school was still in session then) are critical months. Then summer was spent prepping for the next year and a new school, then it's been a matter of getting acclimated to that new school. I'm also sorry this chapter's so short, but the next one should be longer.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Xiaolin Showdown.**

* * *

"The Amazon rain forest? Really?" Kimiko asked as they came in for a landing in the middle of this enormous forest. To add to her frustrations, it was raining.

"Hey, what better place to hide something when you don't want someone finding it?" Dojo asked as the monks climbed off his back, allowing him to return to his original size.

"Little feller's got a point there," Clay said. "This forest is almost bigger than Texas."

"_Almost_ bigger?" Raimundo said, raising an eyebrow at the cowboy.

"Sorry to interrupt, but shouldn't we be looking for that Shen Gong Wu?" Willow asked.

Jolted back into his role, Raimundo said, "Right! Dojo, got any directions for us?"

Dojo sniffed the air, turning his head from left to right. He pressed his nose to the ground, sniffed in a circle, then pointed off to the north, saying, "That way! I sense the Fifi-Xiaogo in that direction!"

The monks ran off toward the north, following Dojo's guidance.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jack Spicer had already found the Shen Gong Wu, thanks to the Crystal Glasses.

"The Fifi-Xiaogo is mine!" he said, snatching it out of a tree. "And not a Xiaolin monk in sight! Using the Crystal Glasses was such a genius move! Sometimes I even amaze myself," he bragged, although nobody was around to hear him.

Knowing that the Xiaolin dragons would arrive shortly, Jack decided to take the Fifi-Xiaogo and leave. With the Shen Gong Wu safely held in his hands, he activated his helibot and flew away, laughing evilly as he did so.

* * *

"I'm telling you, the Fifi-Xiaogo should be around here somewhere," Dojo said as they wandered aimlessly through the rain forest.

"Dojo, we've been looking for hours! It's not here!" Kimiko said. She was less than thrilled at the sheer amount of mud in this forest and was eager to head back to the temple. However, they still hadn't found the Shen Gong Wu.

"Yo, maybe someone else got to it first," Jermaine suggested.

"Such as? Chase isn't interested in Shen Gong Wu, and Jack's not that fast!" Raimundo said.

"The last time we arrived too late, Jack Spicer had gotten help from his future self," Omi reminded them. "Perhaps he is doing so again."

"But, Omi, the Sands of Time is the only time-traveling Shen Gong Wu, and old Omi took it back with him! Jack can't be working with old Jack again."

"Well, either Jack beat us to the Wu, or this here Wu's harder to find than a needle in a haystack."

"I believe we may have arrived too late to retrieve the Fifi-Xiaogo," Ping Pong chimed in.

"Ping Pong might have a point," Willow agreed. "You don't suppose there's another way someone could have found the Shen Gong Wu early, do you?"

Raimundo rubbed his chin, thinking. "Well, it wouldn't be the first time Spicer's gotten a Shen Gong Wu that hadn't revealed itself yet. There was the Third Arm Sash and the Jet Bootsu early on. I guess it's not anything to worry about. Just as long as it only happens once."

"Reckon we oughta head back, then?"

Dojo grew to his full size, realizing the search was over. "Hop on, boys and girls."

The seven monks all climbed aboard, and Dojo flew them back to the temple.

* * *

Elsewhere, Chase Young was watching the events unfolding. He'd seen Jack Spicer locate the Shen Gong Wu, seen him leave the monks in the dust. But he still had no interest in the Shen Gong Wu—he was curious about Jack himself.

"It seems impossible that someone so pathetic could ever be a true warrior, but... Shadow!"

From the shadows behind him, a girl appeared. Her long hair was a dark blue-green, her green eyes reptilian. She was dressed in dark colors, with purple leggings and body armor, a black shirt underneath.

Without looking, Chase told this girl, "Keep an eye on Jack Spicer. He may be the one we're looking for."

"That idiot? I highly doubt he's what anyone's looking for."

"That may be, but appearances can be deceiving. Test his skills, Shadow, and make certain that he cannot be the Dragon of Metal."

Shadow bowed and vanished into the shadows once more. Chase Young crossed his arms.

"If Spicer _does _have what it takes, then the Xiaolin Dragons are at a disadvantage. I never thought I'd see the day I hoped that fool would surprise me."


End file.
